Auxiliary saddle for harness.



No. 720,178. PATENTBD PEB.' 10, 1903. H. MATTEL.

AUXILIARY SADDLE FOR HARNESS.

APPLIGA'TIOH FILED Dnc. 1a. 1901. 11o MODEL,

111 VIII -lillllIl l IIHIHIIIII lllllllllsl' UNITED STATES PATENT f OFFICE.

HENRY RITTEL, MI-LWAUKEE, WISCONSIN.

AUXILIARY SADDLE-FOR HARNESS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of lLetters Patent No. 720,178, dated February 10, 1903.

YArnlication tiled December 13,1901. Serial No. 85,731. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY RITTEL, residing atMilwaukee, in the county ofMilwaukee and State of Wisconsin, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Auxiliary Saddles for Harness, of which the following is a description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which are a part of this speciilication. i

My invention relates to an improved auxiliary saddle to be employed in connection with a harness-saddle to support the harnesssaddle, and thereby to protect the back of the horse on which the harness is being used, especially when the back has become sore by abrasion or irritation produced by the harness-saddle. Harness-saddles are rather narrow and do not bear over any wide space on the horse, and frequently harness-saddles are not so shaped as to properly bear on the par-v ticular horse on which itis being used, thereby causing a sore back.

My invention consists of the auxiliary saddle, its parts, and combinations of parts, as herein described and claimed, or the equivalents thereof.

In the drawings, Figure l is a top plan view of my improved auxiliary saddle, a harnesssaddle being shown in broken lines in connection therewith in the relation which the harness-saddle has to the auxiliary saddle when in use. Fig. 2 is a view of the front end of my improved auxiliary saddle, a harness-saddle being shown in dotted lines. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of my improved saddle.

In my improved saddle a frame is employed, made of metal, either of strap metal or sheet metal or even of steel wire, though I prefer fiat metal, either sheet or strap, as shown in the drawings. This frame has a front and rear extending ridge-piece; and arms 2 and 3, respectively at the front and rear ends of the ridge-piece and secured centrally thereto, which arms project in both directions laterally from the ridge-piece and are bent and extend downwardly and'laterally divergingly, the front arm 2 being carried downwardly with a more acute angle` than the arms at the rear, being thereby adapted to properly fit over and hold the cushions or pads to the withers, while the rear arms, being spread apart more V'obtusely, are adapted to fit on the back of the horse at the rear of the Withers. These laterally-extending arms 2 and 3 are advisably rigid, but maybe slightly elastic, if desired. In the case of the use of steel wire for these arms they would be slightly elastic.

A pad or cushion 4, preferably of thick strong felt and advisably in one piece or connected together, is employed,which pad when made-integral or in the form shown in the drawings has laterally-extending members or parts 5 5, each somewhat'wider and longer than the adjacentarms 2 and 3,to which arms, respectively, these lateral pad members are secured on the under side, conveniently by rivets 6 6, and from the lateral extremities of these laterally-extending pad members 5 5 and opposite the extremities of the arms 2 and 3 side pad members 7 7, extending front and rear, connect the laterally-extending pad members. This construction provides a central open space of considerable size under and at each side of the ridge-piece 1. This open space is preferably and usually Wider than the width of the harness-saddle 8, an outline of such harness-saddle being shown in Figs. l and 2 in broken lines.

As will be understood from the drawings this auxiliary saddle is adapted to rest on the back of afhorse, and the saddle is of such sizeland so spread apart about the open space therein as to rest on the-horse outside of and beyond any sore or abrasion theretofore produced by the harness-saddle. The construc- .tion is such that the tree of the harness-saddle advisably rests and is supported on the 'ridge-piece 1 of the auxiliary saddle, and the pads of the harness-saddle rest and are supported-on the side pad members 7 7 between the laterally-extending frame members 2 and 3. By this means the support of the harness-, f

pad principally is on the ridge-piece 1 and is thereby placed on the horse over a considerable space underneath the laterally-project-V ing frame members 2 and 3 and the thereunder pad members 5 5, while the side pad members 7 7 are required ordinarily only to support the pressure of the harness-pads. By reason of the imperfect fit of harness-saddles to the backs of horses it is sometimes difcult to get the desired distribution of support of the harness-saddle on these auxiliary saddles; but in any event the support of the harness-saddle is by means of my improved auxiliary saddle distributed Widely, and therefore advantageously, on the back of the horse.

For securing the auxiliary pad to the harness straps 9 and 10, provided with buckles, are employed, the strap 9 being secured to the ridge-piece l and being adapted to take into the check hook or other convenient lneans on the harness-saddletree and the strap l0 being secured to the ridge-piece 1 and being adapted to take into the metal loop on the saddletree, usually provided for the back-strap of the harness, or othery convenient attaching device on the harness-saddletree.

It is not essential though advisable that the pad of the auxiliary saddle shall be integral or continuous throughout, for portions of the pad under the central parts of the arms 2 and 3 practically at the top of the saddle might be omitted without serious disadvantage, and in such case the pad would consist of two parts, respectively under the outer extremities of the arms 2 and 3 and extending across the space between the arms at the ends thereof.

What I claim as my invention is l. An'auxiliary saddle, comprising a substantially rigid frame having a centrally-disposed longitudinally-extending ridge-piece and arms at the front and rear secured rigidly to the ridge-piece and projecting laterally therefrom, and a pad or pads under the arms and extending longitudinally at the ends of the arms parallel with the ridge-piece from the front arm-pad to the rear arm-pad.

2. In combination, a harness-saddle, an auxiliary saddle comprising a rigid ridgepiece, substantially rigid laterally-extending arms secured centrally to the ridge-piece at the respective ends thereof, and a pad or pads under the arms and across the space between the arms at the ends thereof, and means connecting the auxiliary saddle to the harness-saddle.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

HENRY RI'ITEL. Witnesses:

W. L. RITTEL, C. T. BENEDICT. 

